


Theo's bizarre adventures

by Psychiatrylukanthropos



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-03
Updated: 2019-04-08
Packaged: 2019-10-21 20:31:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 18,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17649392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Psychiatrylukanthropos/pseuds/Psychiatrylukanthropos
Summary: So like this is my take on Tony Stark being a teenage girl living in a BNHA AU of sorts. That’s it, That’s the plot. Also, lots of things changed because why not.#I woke up in a cold sweat and needed this insanely specific AU that no one else was going to write so here I am.





	1. New phone who dis

The first day of class began as you’d expect. Friends greeting each other, opening ceremonies and excited chatter over what the new year would bring. Going through with the motions of this school, Theo can’t help but wish she could skip forward to the important part. Her time in the workshop.

Rather than pay much attention to her surroundings she continues working inside her brain. Thinking of all the things she plans to get started with now that she is starting her second year at UA. With all these thoughts floating around in her head she went through her day almost in autopilot, regular classes were simple enough and she would take a few notes whenever something relevant popped up. Soon it was lunch break and all the students started filling up the cafeteria. The whole place is bubbling with energy from all the refreshed teenagers, and Theo sits there quietly at the end of a table observing them all as she eats her food.

She stops when her phone suddenly vibrates and she pulls it out of her bag unlocking it quickly to see the new message. She smiled fondly as her screen is overtaken by the image of a fluffy, toasted caramel coloured cat licking from a spoon of ice cream. She quickly types a reply.

**You spoil her too much, and to think you didn’t want a cat. - Theo**

**What’s that thing you keep saying? - Dad**  
**It’s been like that sometimes. - Dad**

**Pls no - Theo**

**Lmao. - Dad**

**D: < \- Theo**

She sets her phone on the table and scrolls back up to the picture saving it before quickly finishing her food, and just as she was about to gather her stuff to leave someone bumped into her table knocking her phone to the floor.

“I’m sorry!” Says a girl with short brown hair and brown eyes, looking rather flustered while picking up the phone and holding it up for Theo to take. Her cheeks were pretty red and Theo gets a feeling it’s not from this encounter.

“Don't worry about it.” Says Theo as she tries to busy her hands with her other belongings. Next to her, a girl with long dark sea green hair and large oval eyes looks at her while bringing her index finger to her chin and muttering a small ribbit. She and the brunette stand there for a second, looking at this girl who hasn’t made a move to grab her phone yet.

“Just put it on the table.” Says Theo rather quickly and without looking up from her bag. The brunette does so, carefully placing the device right where it was a few moments ago.

“That’s a cute cat, ribbit.” Says the other girl. This comment gets Theo’s attention as she smiles up at the girls saying ‘thanks’. The other two girls smile back at this, feeling less awkward now they decide to strike up a conversation.

“It’s the fluffiest thing I’ve ever seen, is it yours?” Says the brunette looking closer at the image and noticing the vibrant green eyes and the cute little pink tongue sticking out to lick on the ice cream.

“Yeap,” Theo replies while smiling down at her phone.

“What’s its name?” The girl with long dark hair asks and leans a little closer.

Theo laughs a little “Her name is Toast.” She says looking back up at the girls to see their faces, which were soon overtaken by a mix of disbelief and amusement while they let out a few giggles.

“That’s so cute, she’s great.” says the brunette. She then turns back to Theo and continues. “Well, we should go now. Sorry again for dropping your phone” she says as she gives her a closed eye smile while clapping her hands together softly.

“I should get going. And it’s not a problem, this thing is very sturdy.” Theo says as she grabs it knocking it against the wooden table a few times. She grabs her things quickly and gets up. “Welp, see you” the girls wave each other goodbye and go their separate ways.

When lunch break ends all the students go back to their respective classrooms to get ready for their afternoon classes. And for Theo, this is the best part of a school day. This is where she can sit down and do what she loves, using her mind to create things, and she had been itching to get started on that new watch gauntlet all day. Or at least that was until their teacher, Power Loader, calls out to her to have a word.

 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

 

“The school wants me to do what now?” Theo asks a little taken back at the sudden request.

“A training sim, for the hero course students. The school is thinking of new ways to challenge its students and they concluded that a program that could help them train in many more scenarios than the school’s facilities can provide would help them grow” Powerloader explains as he hands her a brief.

“Huh... “ ‘That does make sense’, she thought and she carefully grabbed the form and skimmed through it quickly. “And they only need me for this?” She says, looking up at the pro hero while raising her eyebrow.

“Yes, the school board believes your knowledge in programming makes you the best choice. I’m sure a few holograms would be pretty easy for you, right?” The hero asks in a cheerful tone, trying to get her pumped up for this task.

“Well, ok. Thanks for the offer, I’ll start working on it right away” She says, getting a thumbs up in response. Walking back to her station Theo reads over the brief paying close attention to the request and all the specifications in it.

‘So they want a program that can simulate a real-life scenario that can also display threats while making it as believable as possible’. She thinks after reading, placing the brief down on her desk and opens up a notebook. ‘If it’s for one of their gyms I’m gonna have to think about how the sim is going to interact with that setting’, she sits down grabbing a pencil. ‘Also a way for them to easily reprogram the settings according to the situation they want to recreate… The first day of school and they already threw me a curveball, huh.’

She starts brainstorming ideas and sketching all the devices that will make this thing possible, quickly making notes and listing all the materials she would need. She decides she would be doing most of the complex researching and programming at home but should probably get started since it is still a lot for work for one person.

“That’s fine. I’ll wreck this project like all the others, plus ultra I guess.”


	2. BEANS

The low rays of the sun seeping into the room from the open window are the only thing lighting up the cluttered space. The girl shuffling around in a simple hoodie and sweatpants grabs her backpack, stuffing several small objects and papers inside, and setting it down near the door. She looks around her messy room taking a breath while thinking should clean this place up soon, and goes to open the mini fridge to grab a caprisun.

“Miss Stark” It’s an electronic voice coming from a device on her desk. After stabbing the straw into the caprisun and taking a sip the girl replies with a quick ‘yeap’ and continues. “Happy is outside and ready to pick you up”.

“Awesome. Tell him I’ll be there in five.” She says, turning to grab her bag and slinging it over her shoulders. “Oh, and. Tell Rhodey I’m going home and I’ll be waiting for him.”

“Right away miss” is the last thing she hears before walking out.

She quickly makes her way out of the dorms hearing some yelling and perhaps someone getting launched several feet into the air in the distance..? Who knows? Must be those wacky hero course kids, she thinks. And now that the school has fresh meat things are already pretty lively. A group of fresh new minds with goals and aspirations really make the entire school buzz with renewed energy. So much so that even Theo noticed. She steps out of the school’s front gate and immediately spots the tall man standing next to a black car.

“Hello Theo, how was your first day of school?” says happy offering her a warm smile while extending his hand towards her bag.

“Hey, thanks. It was fine.” She hands him her bag and lets him put it in the trunk of the car. “I got a new project and it’s big so I’m going to be working at home for now.” She opens the door and lets herself in. Only to notice a furry creature poke its little head out from the front seat.

“Toast! Baby, you came to pick me up too??” She says with a huge smile on her face, grabbing the fluffy cat and setting it on her lap and scratching its little head. Happy gets on the driver seat and looks back at the two of them before starting to drive home.

“Since you were coming home your father thought she would want to go early with you while he stays at work,”

“Really? That’s nice, I thought I wouldn’t get to see her much since it’s a weekday.”

Happy laughs a little. “So this project of yours, how big is it?”

“The school basically asked me to create a training sim for the hero course.” She says, watching his eyebrows rise at this statement. “They want something really nice and fancy... Figures, since it’s for the hero course.” They stay quiet after this, the only noise being Toast’s little meows and purrs as she rubs her little face all over her owner.

Later they arrive at the Stark mansion. A rather large white building resting graciously by the beach. As they step in Theo lets go of the cat to let it roam around, she was just about to grab her bag when a voice calls out to her.

“Hey, Theo!” The person gets up from the couch and walks up to her.

“Rhodey?” She turns to face him and smiles. “Hey man. You got here fast.” They embrace each other for a moment before he replies.

“Yeah, you called me here.”

“I did.” She says, she then turns to back to happy and grabs her bag. “We’ll be at the workshop if you need us.”

“Nice to see you again, Happy.” Happy gives him a nod in response as they begin to descend to said workshop, chatting animatedly about mundane things.

 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


“You’re kidding me.” Rhodey says as he looks up from the brief Theo had shown him.

“Na-uh.”

“Yeah, you are.”

She stops her typing and looks at him. “Dude…”

“Ok, so you are telling me that UA, _the_ UA. Top hero school **in the** **country** thinks their hero training is lame enough to ask a support student to fix it?“ He asks, putting on a disappointed look on his face.

“Dude, don’t trash talk my school like that.” She says as she continues typing, though she’s trying to bite down a smile.

“All right, all right. I’m just kidding.” He says dropping the façade while waving his hands up and only getting a very sarcastic ‘mmhhm’ from the girl. “But in all seriousness, this is very cool. It’s like you get to fight the hero students without actually fighting them.”

“Oh yeah? How so?” She says, sparing him a glance before standing up to get a memory disk from one of the shelves and plugging it to her computer. One of her monitors just showed a bunch of code while the other one had some other programs open and a loading screen.

“Well. This thing you are making, it’s supposed to fight them right? So you get to design how it’s going to behave and attack them. It’s basically going to fight for you while you are on the other side controlling it. And if you fight them in your own terms like that I’m sure they’ll get wrecked.” He said crossing his arms with a smug grin on his face.

“Yeah but let’s not forget these guys have combat training, and experience fighting real battles. They’re not going to go down easily..” She says while looking over a few sheets of paper and then hand them to him. “Look at this. They’re all really strong.”

He grabs them and skims over the lists quickly. They are lists of all the current hero course students, along with their quirks and any other information the school deemed necessary in order to make this program as personalized and effective as possible. “Yeah, but so are you.”

“Hmm, I don’t know about that.” She says taking the lists back and placing them neatly on a desk one next to the other before stepping back. She completely missed the apprehensive look her friend gave her. “Jarvis, scan these too.”

“As you wish, miss.” The electronic voice responds before a beam of light moves across the sheets, scanning the information and sending it to another one of her monitors. “Scan complete.”

“Thanks. I want that in the Training Simulation folder as well.” She turns back to her friend who seems to have a faraway look and furrows her eyebrows. “Hello, earth to Rhodey.” She claps her hands loudly to get him out f whatever trance he was in.

“Welcome back to the land of the living.”

“Yeah, thanks, Theo.”

“You are welcome. So how was the first day?”

“Uneventful.”

“Really? That’s all?”

“Sadly yes. Aside from the sheer amount of homework they gave on the first day there’s nothing else worth mentioning.” He says while shrugging a little, letting out a sign before slumping back in his chair.

“Well shit dude, suck to be a freshman in college huh.” She says getting back to her computer and continuing to write the code.

“Yeah well, it’s only the first day. I guess it’s not like UA where they like to start out with a bang.” He looks at her before continuing. “Though in your case it’s more like a  _ pop _ ” he holds his hand to his head mimicking a gun and tapping it to his head at the sound.

“I know right. And they want this as soon as physically possible but ideally within a month. Like who needs sleep right? Not me apparently.” She says mimicking an evil laugh but with very little enthusiasm.

“That’s what you get for being too smart, jackass.”

“Yeah ok, thanks. You are not being very helpful here.”

“But you don’t need my help. So how are you gonna do this?” He asks as he rolls his chair closer to where she’s sitting in front of her monitors typing rapidly.

“Well… First I need to gather as much information as I can. About the students, quirks, fighting styles, weaknesses. Anything I can get my hands on really. Even their past combat experiences would be good. Build a database with all this information and keep expanding on it, that’s what I’m working on over there.” She stops her typing to briefly point at the monitors that had been showing the loading screen as well as the lists and some other programs running. “That’s probably going to take weeks.”

“Right, the more information you feed it program, the more intelligent it will become.”  He says nodding his head at the screens.

“Right, exactly. So while that is happening I’ll be writing the programs that are going to be taking in all that information and processing it. I have no clue how long that’s going to be. It will take some tinkering but it needs to be completed soon.”

He backs away a little, gently nodding his head as he spins his chair around before looking back at her. “What about the simulation itself, how do you plan on doing that?”

“Oh, that.” She stops and goes to grab a notebook from her bag, opening it up to reveal several pages of sketches and notes. She points to the sketch of a spherical robot. “This thing here, I have no idea what to call it right now, is what will be projecting holograms from above. They will have built-in speakers, cameras and motion sensors to track and study the movements of other people, as well as allow the controller to see and hear what they are doing. But this is the easiest part which I’ll be doing in class, while I get all the heavy programming done here.”  She goes gets back to her work while Rhodey keeps on looking at her designs and notes intently. After a few minutes of silence aside from the keyboard clicks and the occasional page turning he speaks up, looking quite impressed with the level of thought and analysis she put into these plans.

“You already thought about everything… In one single afternoon?”

“Well, I tried to make the most of my time at school since I really wanted to start working here. I have better equipment which makes my work easier so it will be worth the trip back home every day.”

“Dude you are a machine..” She turns to give him a look before he continues.

“You know, normal people want to take it easy at the beginning of the year before things get crazy.” He says laughing a bit.

“Na dude, I’m here to work hard and die fast.”

“But not too fast!”

“Won’t be fast enough. Anyway. I’ll be here, dying a lot, so drop by whenever you want okay?”

“Yeah, sure.” He checks the clock in his phone before putting in back in his pocket. “All right you idiot, I gotta get home and do homework.” He stands up and starts walking to the stairs. “I’ll text you later.”

“All right cool, see you later nerd.” They wave at each other and as soon as he disappears beyond the stairs she turns back and cracks her knuckles. “let’s get down to business.”

  
  
  



	3. [puts food in mouth] [clicks mouth] Noice.

Theo steps out of the black car slinging her bag over her shoulders, quickly making her way past the gates of UA. She had been working incredibly had these past few hours and while she did feel kind of tired after a long day she still had homework to do. But to be honest, she didn’t really feel all that tired. Her mind was buzzing with thoughts and ideas about the sim and organizing it all in her mind. Quickly typing everything in her phone before those ideas escaped her mind again, she completely failed to notice a small object in her path as she power walked to her dorm. And she would have continued walking had it not been for the loud crunch that resonated as she stepped on it. This made her stop completely. She peered down and stepped away, seeing a black smartphone on the ground, and picked it up only to notice the screen had cracked and the pixels were messed up all around it. She stood there for a moment cursing at her own stupidity, thinking of how she would have to fix it now before going to find the owner when a voice interrupted her train of thought. Moment    
  
“Hello, excuse me…” She turns to see a green haired freckled boy. She recognized him immediately, a hero course student in the same year. “Have you seen a phone anywhere? I think I dropped mine somewhere around here.” He seemed a little shy about this whole interaction even though he was the one to approach her first. She blinked at him before replying.    
  
“Does it happen to be this poor thing I just stepped on?” She questions as she holds out the device she just picked up. His eyes lit up a little when he saw it.   
  
“Yes! That-“ He noticed the huge crack on the screen, reaching out for it and running his fingers above it. Noticing this, she quickly speaks up.   
  
“I’m so sorry. I wasn’t looking where I was going and I totally stepped on it.” She gave him an apologetic look while gesturing to the spot where she picked it up from.    
  
“No no, it’s fine. At least you found it. I was going to head to my dorm when I noticed it wasn’t in my pocket anymore and have been looking for it ever since.” He tried to reassure her, sure it was a large crack but I still worked, for now at least, he would just have to make do until he was able to get another one. That would be the second since he got into UA, he thought. She studied his expression before speaking again.   
  
“Still, I’m really sorry. But I can fix it if you want.”    
  
“Oh! Are you from support? It’s ok though, I’m sure you have other things to do.” He waved his hands a little.   
  
“Not at all, I was originally planning to fix it and then you showed up. I promise this will only take a second.” He just gave her a confused look before she continued. “Please. It’s the least I can do after breaking it.”   
  
“Oh, ok..” He seemed to understand a little and he held out his phone towards her. Upon seeing this she touched her hands together and placed both thumbs and index fingers on it firmly, not intending to grab it from his hold. They both watched as the damage was fixed in a matter of seconds and soon there was no trace left of the huge crack on the screen. Theo let go of the phone and looked back at him.    
  
“There, all done.” He had been stroking the screen and found it to be smooth once again, and just as he was about to ask how she did it she stepped back and moved away. “Welp. I have tons of homework to get on with so… yeah. Bye!” She quickly resumed her speed walk towards her dorm without even sparing the boy a second glance as he stood there looking quite surprised and confused. 

  
  


\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


“Hey, Stark.” 

 

Theo had just walked into the common rooms of her dorm when a female voice called out to her. She stopped in her tracks and turned towards the direction of the voice, only letting a short ‘hmm’ in response. 

 

“Tell me…” Suddenly a pink haired girl is right on her face. “How is that new baby of yours going?” Theo blinks and steps back a little before replying. 

 

“Uh, pretty good for our first day. But still got a long way to go.” The pink haired girl’s smile grows a little bigger. That and her wide yellow eyes almost make her look like a predator. 

 

“I can’t wait to see it! You  _ will _ show me when it’s finished, right?” Once again, she gets closer to Theo. This time grabbing both of her shoulders to keep her in place. 

 

“Sure. Of course I will Hatsume. I could use your input if I grill my brain too much.” Theo says giving her a smile before the other girl grabs her arm and begins to drag her towards the large couch. 

 

“Great! Then you better start sharing everything you’ve do-” She stops when Theo pulls back her arm. “What?”

 

“Listen. I’d love to go over everything with you but I can’t right now-”

 

“You still haven’t done your homework.” Mei crosses her arms while raising an eyebrow at Theo. 

 

“I still haven’t done my homework.” Theo repeats back shrugging a little. They stare at each other for a moment before they both snort with laughter. Hatsume shakes her head lightly before teasing her friend. 

 

“Well, the new year already failed to make your more responsible. Get your shit together before it bites you in the ass.” She said half-heartedly, laughing at her friend’s mock horror expression. 

 

“Did Mei Hatsume just swear?” 

 

“I learned Theodora Stark lingo when we became friends.” Mei was standing with her hands on her hips and a smug grin on her face.

 

“I’m rubbing off on you. Unacceptable. I'm gonna leave now.” Hearing her friends booming laughter Theo quickly turned around and began heading towards the elevator. Biting down a grin she presses the button and the doors open. 

 

Right as she’s pressing the button of her floor she hears a loud “Good night Stark!” Theo looks back at her and replies with a quick ‘good night’ before the doors close. Theo quietly makes her way back to her own room and discards her bag in a corner when her phone buzzes with a new text. 

 

**Try to get some sleep zZZzzZ - Hatsume**

 

A fond smile slowly takes over her features as she reads the text. She makes no promises but will try nonetheless. She can’t help but keep smiling at her friend's wacky nature. It makes her fun, she thinks. Strangely unique but endearing. If you like that sort of thing.

 

Back on earth, Theo moves to grab her books, ready to begin with that pesky homework. 

 

“Jarvis, you up? We have work to do.”

  
  


\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


Theo ended up pulling an all-nighter. What a surprise. But when you finish your work 3 hours before you should be getting up to get ready for class, going to sleep is a terrible idea. At least, that’s how it works for her. If she had gone to sleep getting up would have been next to impossible, therefore, she chose to stay up playing games on her console. A good way to get her mind of her work and relax while also helping her stay alert. Her young age will help her through her lack of sleep, and with this new project, she might as well get used to it. 

 

And that would be her life for the next few weeks. She’s vaguely aware of the passing of time and sleeping maybe 3 days a week, all while making very good progress on her project and somehow keeping up with her regular homework assignments. Rhodey tries to be there for her as much as she can. They always get a good laugh when he calls her a machine and occasionally they simply hang out and play games or indulge in ungodly amounts of snacks. And her kitty is always there for emotional support and cuddles. So and Toast have taken it upon themselves to make sure she doesn't crack under the pressure.

 

Theo is holding up surprisingly well in her terms. She can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just a few more days to work out the kinks in her tech and she’ll be done. Finally. She could argue that it’s all been worth it, after all, the sim is working nicely. Constantly running and testing it at home has proven it functions well enough, and she can always go back and fix it when something is out of place. 

 

‘Just a few more days’, she keeps repeating to herself. ‘Take one day at the time. Let those small victories push you forward.’ This becomes her mantra, but she’s so tired she’s practically a zombie, so she is not surprised when she passes by a pair of girls and accidentally bumps into one of them after a long day. It’s technically like three days since for her a day ends when she goes to sleep, but that’s unimportant. 

 

“I’m so sorry, I wasn't looking-” She quickly says, snapping back to reality, only to realize no one is standing there. She does a double take narrowing her eyes and now notices a pair of floating gloves. By now the other two girls have noticed her too.

 

“It’s ok! I’m working on my stealth so you wouldn’t have seen me anyway!” Theo hears a girly voice coming from the direction of the floating gloves, which are waving around, and after a long 10 seconds her brain clicks. 

 

“Oh. Right, You are invisible. Sorry about that, I’m not sleeping enough.” Theo tries to smile at the girl since her tired face looks downright homicidal but has a feeling it won't really do much for her appearance.

 

“This happens a lot. Even when I'm wearing clothes sometimes.” “Yeah, it does.” A pink skinned girl from the chimes in while the other one with black choppy bangs laughs. “Don’t worry about it.” Says the invisible girl. By the position of the gloves, Theo guesses the girl is giving her a thumbs up while resting her other hand on her hips. She also notices the shoes shifting slightly whenever the gloves wave around. 

 

“All right, cool.” She offers the girl a lazy wave and smile as she turns around to walk away. Only to stop abruptly a few steps later. “Hold on…” Theo turns back toward the other girls with a straight face, lazy smile completely gone, and the furrowing of her eyebrows accentuates her dark eye bags. This confuses the girls for a moment. “Are you naked?” Her face looks like a mixture of anger and confusion, or maybe that's just the exhaustion talking.

 

“Uh, I guess I am.” The other girls glance at each other but before any of them could say anything else Theo continues speaking. 

 

“It’s like, 16 degrees dude, aren’t you freezing?” Theo tilts her head slightly. The worry in her tone completely betraying her facial expression. The other girls seem slightly relieved at this. 

 

“You can’t see me shivering, but I am!” The gloves seem to cross and grab something, Probably her arms, Theo thinks. 

 

“Don’t you have like a costume or something? How do you fight the cold?”   
  
“Actually, my hero costume is similar to this so I’m cold all the time.” She just couldn’t believe it. This girl is out here freezing her ass off, and no one thought of doing something about it? Unacceptable, prepare for war. She glances between the three girls, one thousand gears turning inside her head.    
  
“So through the whole winter, everyone just slept on the fact that you’re out here, naked, in the cold.” Theo says while pursing her lips.   
  
“Well, she’s invisible. There’s not much anyone can do about that.” Says the girl with dark choppy bangs, the pink girl next to her agrees.    
  
“But it’s fine! If I’m going to be a hero I have to toughen up. I’ll be fine. I like to think happy thoughts to get through it.” At that very moment Theo’s heart went out to this girl. She herself would be insanely cranky if she had to go around completely exposed.   
  
“That sounds exhausting.” Theo said in a low voice. One of the girls seems to hum in agreement. “Hey can I have a lock of your hair?” A chorus of confused ‘what’s followed.    
  
“It’s for research purposes.”    
  
“I’m sorry, it’s just. That’s a little weird. We don’t even know each other.”   
  
“Right.” She holds out her hand to the invisible girl first. “Theodora. Stark. Class 2H, nice to meet you.” The floating glove grabs her hand and shakes it.    
  
“Tooru Hagakure, class 2A. Nice to meet you too!” Bubbly. Theo notes in her mind and smiles a little. She turns to the other girls with the same gesture and shakes their hand too. She finds out the pink girl’s name is Mina Ashido, and the girl with dark hair is Kyoka Jirou. They are also in the same class. Despite her foggy, tired self Theo tries her hardest to make a mental note of this info.    
  
“Sooo... still a no on that hair sample?”    
  
“Why do you want my hair.”   
  
“It's for science.”   
  
“I would prefer you don’t-“   
  
“Ok cool, I was just wondering. Actually, I just remembered I was supposed to get ready and leave like uhh..” she looks at her phone and her eyes widen a little. “Five minutes ago. I gotta run. I’ll catch you guys later.” She throws the girls a quick wave before speeding towards the dorms. The girls are left a little weirded out and confused. I think it’s safe to say Theo has that habit. 

 

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


Theo storms into her room throwing everything off and trying to find a comfy outfit as fast as she can.    
  
“Happy is outside waiting for you miss.” She hears Jarvis speak up as she picks up a random hoodie from the pile of clothes on _ the _ chair.    
  
“Yeap! Tell him I’ll be there as soon as I can.” She says throwing on the clothes she picked up.    
  
“Will do.”    
  
“Oh and. I’d like to open up a new project. Index as ‘Spectral invisibility cloaking’, I’ll add more to it later.” She quickly says while grabbing her things and walking to her door.   
  
“Of course miss.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 'The' chair, as in that one chair everyone has in their room that always has a pile of clothes. Because who has time to fold clothes while they're still alive.


	4. Strange flaunt but alas

Class 1A was gathering in Ground Beta, ready to start their heroics lesson. They had been told previously that they would be testing out a new type of training provided by the school, and to say that they were curious was an understatement. A lot of them wondered what was so special about this ‘new training’ since it had the teachers fussing over it. Especially when they’d be in the same training ground they have used since their first year in this school. But still, they had heard a few things from the third years, and while they were mostly really vague comments since they apparently weren't really supposed to talk about it, it still had everyone in the class at least curious about this new development. 

  
The students were lead inside by Aizawa towards a specific street and found it to be mostly empty aside from a few machines and two other people. Who upon closer inspection turned out to be the pro hero Power Loader and a female student around their age. They were engaged in a very animated conversation, pointing and waving at some of the machines here and there until the other teacher got their attention. Power Loader then said something to the girl before turning back to the other adult to give a curt greeting. Meanwhile, the girl continued to move around some of the props and checking up on her machines without giving much thought to the other people around her.    
  
“For those of you who are wondering about this new training. Since you only get three years of training to be a pro you need as much exposure to all kinds of emergencies as we can provide. So, the school made this so you could all benefit from the experience.” The girl still shuffling around the machines spared a sharp glance at Aizawa when the words ‘the school made this’ left his mouth and she moved on muttering something to herself. She then sat down to type something on a computer. “Now, hurry up and get started. You are wasting our time.” he turned to the girl who continued typing and answered without even sparing him a glance.

 

“You guys are two minutes early, I’m not wasting anyone’s time yet.” Aizawa narrowed his eyes at the girl before the other hero walked next to him and spoke. 

 

“I can explain what it is if any of you have questions!” Power Loader quickly said, taking everyone’s attention away from the girl who still paid no mind to any of them. 

 

“Yes! What exactly will we be doing in today’s training sir?” Asked Ida as he held his hand up, straight and rigid as always. Others from the class also voiced out their questions one after another. Power Loader explains to them how they will be testing out a simulation created to mimic all kinds of real-life situations which they will have to resolve. Hearing this the students sprung up with even more questions which the teacher tried to answer quickly so they could get started soon.

 

Away from all that noise, Theo has just finished up the routine diagnostics on her system and all of her machines. She rubs her tired eyes as she hits a key and the projectors power on. The smaller round ones began levitating, while the larger blocky ones moved on wheels to place themselves at different corners of the gym. This caught the attention of the students who had just heard the rules of this exercise and were being separated randomly into teams. Theo got up and walked towards the group. 

 

“And who the hell is this extra.” Bakugo said with annoyance, scowling at her and her stupid face when she turned to look at him. But before she could answer one of the girls spoke up.

 

“Hey, it’s you!” Uraraka beamed, waving at the girl in front of her. It may have been about a month since they met but she remembered the moment very clearly, especially since it had all been thanks to her dear friend Tsu teasing her about her little crush. When you are that flustered it’s kind of hard to forget. 

 

“Yes, it’s me.” Theo replied as she gave a slight wave in return. 

 

“You are that girl from the support course.” Midoriya pointed out, he seemed to brighten up as if it had been on the tip of his tongue this whole time but just now remembered it. 

 

“Yeah! I remember you.” Said Ashido, turning to look at both Jirou and Hagakure before continuing. “We met you the other day.” The floating gloves next to her seemed to be waving as a happy ‘Hello again’ came from the same direction. Theo just let out a short hum in reply.

 

“What’s the damn nerd doing here then?” Bakugo growled, his scowl had deepened the moment he heard the word support. 

 

“Don’t worry spiky. I’m just here to oversee the simulation, report back on its performance and turn it off if something goes wrong.” She replied flatly, earning an elbow nudge from her teacher who just gave her a look that said: ‘behave’.  So she turned back to the class and introduced herself quickly. “I’m Theo Stark. It’s nice to meet you all.” ‘Except for the blonde bitch.’ she thought and it brought a small smile to her face. Some of the others greeted her and turned to Aizawa to ask what kind of setting he wanted for this session. He muttered something about the city and a robbery and Theo just nodded and went back to her computer, with Power Loader right behind her. 

 

She initiated the holographic sequence and the class watched as the machines all positioned themselves in certain places and began projecting quite a lot of people into what was previously an empty street. The class watched with amazement as the holographic image calibrated itself until it looked almost real. Save for the few times the image would refract here and there, especially when touched, but it was still a very impressive render and they grew even more excited by now. 

 

“Purse snatchers, small-time thieves and lowlives. There will be many times when you will all have to deal with villains and criminals while out in public. Especially if you got out for patrol often. But the point is, you need to be able to decide what is the best course of action in those situations. And you need to consider what and who is around you during those times. This kind of training is necessary but we can't endanger actual civilians for this, that’s why using this kind of simulation is the most logical solution.” Aizawa explained and some students talked between themselves. Probably reminiscing on all the times they have witnessed fights in crowded areas. “With that said, The first team will go in and neutralize the danger.” He gave Theo a nod and she pressed a button and the holographic people crowding the street started moving just as if she pressed play on a movie. Every single one of them acting completely normal, moving on in different directions, and completely oblivious of the students standing there gawking at the hologram. 

 

Theo looked at the five students standing at the front. The first team for this exercise. A girl with black hair in a high ponytail and a red leotard turned to talk to the others. ‘Fancy and bold, huh.’ she thought as she scanned the rest. A boy in a boiler suit with heterochromia, the girl with choppy bangs from the other day wearing some edgy clothes, a boy in a black and white suit with weird elbows, and the green little dude she kind of remembers from a month ago. They were discussing things like how they should scout the area first and if they see any danger they would alert the others and get the ‘people’ away from danger. The green boy looked around the area and noticed her staring at them. 

 

“Go in when you are ready.” Theo said to them, they looked at her and nodded before stepping towards the crowd. They had been wondering how it is that they could interact with the civilians from the hologram since they couldn't be touched, and right now it seemed as if they weren’t even aware of their presence since a person had walked right through Midoriya. But just as they did so, one of the floating orbs came to hover above each one of them which had them confused for a second. “Don’t worry, they are only there to scan your movements so you can be recognized by the system.” This seemed to ease their confusion since they kept walking into the crowd, this time however the people made eye contact with them and walked around the group rather than straight through it. A mother and child were walking towards them, hand in hand, and while the mother seemed unbothered by them the little girl kept staring with wide eyes. As she got closer she began to smile widely at them.

 

By now they seemed pretty impressed since they looked back at her with wide eyes. “You can talk to them. Try and wave or something.” Midoriya was the first turn back to the girl who still looked pretty awed by them as if she knew they were heroes. He waved at her and was surprised when she giggled a little and waved back excitedly. The others had been watching this exchange, slightly bewildered at how real everything felt. Midoriya was about to say something when they suddenly heard a commotion a few blocks ahead. The mother seemed to flinch and pull her child along a little faster. The heroes in training glanced at each other before quickly making their way through the crowd. 

 

Sero had gone ahead since his tape gave him more mobility in streets like these, he landed on a streetlight and observed the situation from there. It seemed to be a loud dispute between a group of men right at a street corner. He informed his teammates of the situation right as they caught up, and they decided they had to intervene before this escalated into a full-on quirk brawl.

 

They tried approaching the men to diffuse the situation only for them all to start getting even more riled up and start throwing punches at each other. Which in turn caught the attention of the people in the surrounding area as they stood around to see what was going on. While Sero and Jirou tried to keep the civilians from getting any closer Yaoyarozu, Todoroki and Midoriya stayed trying to break off the fight. 

 

What they didn't notice was the shady looking guy in a hood lurking around the crowd that had formed. He seemed to be making his way through, pushing and bumping into people. And while Sero was occupied trying to keep the people back using his tape and telling them to stay calm, Jirou spotted the guy. She had been observing him and found his behaviour very suspicious. She Told Sero to take care of the crowd before pushing through it herself. The hooded guy noticed her and started pushing people out of his way, trying to get away in the opposite direction in an effort to lose her. And for a moment there he thought he did. Jirou, however, used her height to her advantage to blend in with the crowd and ambush him. She had forgotten this was just a hologram, so it was surprising to see the guy being knocked to the floor when she rammed into him from the side as soon as he exited the crowd. 

 

“You caught me hero. I give up!” he said as she stood over him. When he had fallen over the stuff he had been carrying in his pockets fell out, revealing several smartphones, wallets, jewellery and other expensive looking items she figured he had stolen just now while everyone was distracted. A moment later, several people started complaining about their missing belongings and Jirou smiled to herself. 

 

“Don’t worry everyone, I caught the thief!” She said, gaining the attention from a lot of people as they quickly scurried over to reclaim their stolen things, all while thanking her profusely. The crowd had started to disperse and Jirou could hear the others letting them know the situation had been handled and that they should move along. At that moment Sero had Found Jirouto tell her about how the others had handled the situation only to find her holding down the hooded guy. Someone else had called the police earlier, and they arrived at that moment with handcuffs to apprehend the criminals. Said police officers had thanked them for handling the situation so far, and told them they would take care of the rest as they cuffed and moved the criminals away.

 

The street then cleared up of people and the few that had still been walking around seemed to freeze in the moment. Just then, an electronic voice coming from the machines informed them that they had completed the exercise. They walked back to the class where Aizawa commented on their performance and told the next group to hurry up and get ready. 

 

“Nicely done.” Theo said to the first team as they walked past her. They were talking animatedly about the experience they just had when they heard her. 

 

“Eraserhead probably didn't comment much since he’s too lazy to go over individual results all the time. But you guys handled that really well for a first time.” The excavation hero said to them with a thumbs up. They seemed to lighten up at his comment so he continued. “It’s not uncommon for thieves to take opportunity of a situation like that.” He pointed at Jirou. “And you. Through all that distraction you were very alert and aware of your surroundings. Well done.” Jirou was practically glowing at the praise she was getting, but she muttered something about it not being that much.

 

“I don't know if you figured it out but they were all working together. So it’s thanks to your quick thinking that you all passed this exercise.” Theo added before starting another simulation for the next group. A few people had gathered around them to comment on what just happened. The group had mentioned how well they could interact with the simulation, surprised that it could react accordingly to the use of their quirks, and how they would try to grab on to the people only to remember they weren't real.

 

All in all, the sim was performing very well, and this could widen the scope of their overall training. Class went on for a while as the remaining groups went through their individual training. By the end of the class, they were really excited to continue working with this sim. Eraserhead had dismissed them and was discussing something with the other hero before they walked off. 

 

By now, Theo had gathered all her things on a trolley and was wheeling them away when she remembered something. She whipped around to look at the girls of class 2A. They were all walking together, probably to the changing rooms, and Theo called out to them as she wheeled the trolley around. The girls turned back to her and watched as she quickly made her way towards them. 

 

“Hey. Stark right? What’s up?” Said Uraraka without missing a beat. Theo stopped in front of them and started moving things off the trolley to get to the small case she had forgotten there this whole time. 

 

“Yes. Not much really, I just have something for your friend here.” She said as she grabbed the case and walked up to the invisible girl. All the other girls seemed a little surprised by this and looked at the case expectantly. “It may be a little late for this since it’s getting warmer out but still,” She said as she opened the case. 

 

Inside there was something light blue with a few hints of pink folded neatly. They all watched as it floated out of the case and unfolded, seemingly being picked up by the invisible girl. It was a jumpsuit. And a rather cute one at that. The design was simple but nice, and the fabric was firm but it looked comfortable to wear. 

 

“I can’t see your expression right now, so I can’t tell if you like it but in case you do it’s all yours.” Theo said closing the case and setting it aside for a moment. The girls inspected it closely and commented on how cute it was.

 

“I do like it. But, why are you giving this to me?” 

 

“I can’t sit here and watch you freeze because you can only wear those gloves and shoes. Honestly. I wish I had known about this sooner, I definitively would have done something about your hero costume since the very beginning.” She said placing her hands on her hips as she waited for the girl to put it on. 

 

“Thank you but I can’t-”

 

“Oh and, you don't have to worry about anything. I already took care of the forms so you can wear it for your hero classes. You should try it on right now.” Theo added quickly, trying to ease what she assumed was her only worry about the costume. 

 

“I think what Hagakure trying to say is that due to her quirk, she needs to be able to disappear completely, and she can't do that while wearing a suit. So it wouldn't be useful for her, but I’m sure your gesture is appreciated.” Yaoyarozu explained, and all the others agreed. 

 

Theo blinked twice before going realizing. “Ah.” In her sleep-deprived state, she didn't realize they couldn't possibly know what the suit is capable of if she doesn’t show them. 

 

“Yes, that’s what I wanted to say. But it’s a shame. It’s so cute I wish I could wear it.” 

 

“So then wear it.” The other girls looked at Theo with sheepish smiles. ‘She probably doesn't get it’ they think. “Listen, I've spent a disgusting amount of time on it from the moment we met. I had to completely neglect sleep and homework to get it done in such a short time. Would you entertain me for a minute and put it on for me?” She said as she stepped closer so she could see how much she wanted her to put it on. They stood there for a minute glancing at each other before Hagakure finally agreed. She took off her gloves and shoes and stepped into the jumpsuit, she noticed it was warm and very comfortable. 

 

“How is it? Is it too tight anywhere?”

 

“No, it fits nicely, actually” She was twisting around, Theo assumed she must be admiring the suit form other angles. “I love it.” She said, perhaps a little sad, but it’s hard to tell when your only clue is her voice. The suit had gloves and what seemed like thin flats in for her feet. So it covered most of her body except her head. Theo had designed it so that it would protect her from the outdoors but it wouldn't restrict her movement. So, aside from the chest piece, it was very sleek and smooth. Mina said she ‘looked HAWT’ in it and the other girls laughed and agreed. 

 

“Great. You see that button on your chest?” She pointed at the spot before continuing. “When you want to disappear, press it twice.” At this comment, all the girls seemed a little taken back. And when Hagakure lifted her hand and brought it to her chest, lightly stroking the button.

 

“This one?”

 

“Yes.” Theo smirked, you could see the growing anticipation in the faces of the other girls. They were all thinking the same thing. ‘Surely she didn't mean that it can become invisible too, right? That’s not possible.’ But when Hagakure did as told, they all watched as the suit started to glow in sections resembling a beehive, and those sections slowly started to disappear right in front of their eyes. In a moment, the entire suit was gone and Theo was pretty sure the girls were losing their minds. Shouting things like ‘what?’, ‘omg!’ and ‘how?!’ and someone might have said ‘witchcraft...’, but that was probably a joke. 

 

“So, do you like it?” Asked, wondering if this was enough to convince the girl to keep the suit. It’s not like she would be upset if she didn’t like it, but she would. She would never say that, of course. 

 

“Like it? I LOVE it! It’s so awesome. How does it even do that? Wait how do I get it to change back?” Though she was invisible, they could hear the bounce in her step, so she must be very excited. 

 

“Right. Same button, but three times and hold on the third.” They watched as the suit reappeared with the same effect but in reverse this time, and now they could actually see Hagakure bounce with happiness. “Glad you like it so much.” 

 

“I don’t  _ like _ I  _ ADORE _ . It’s amazing and I can’t believe you did this for me.” She was twirling happily in her new costume while the others watched.

 

“You made it yourself, right? It must have been very hard.” Said Jirou looking back at Theo, figuring this must be why she looks so tired. 

 

“For a moment there I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it. So it was hard. But not impossible.” She said looking down at her phone. “Well, I have sleep and homework to catch up with so I’ll see you guys around.” The other girls waved goodbye while Hagakure couldn't help but engulf her in a quick hug. They had asked for to exchange contact information later since they were definitely friends now and Theo agreed. Waving she turned to grab her trolley and head back, hearing the girls walk away and talking animatedly about everything that’s happened today brought a smile to her face.

 

“Small victories.” She said to no one in particular as she moved her utterly exhausted body towards the school’s main building. She still had to drop these off at the workshop before heading back to her dorm and dealing with her own work. It’s been a long month, but at least now she can rest.


	5. Bethany, I made BISCUITS!

A few days later, when Theo is finally all caught up with homework and rest, she is once again present for a hero class. She had been overseeing the training of both hero classes in each year, and the two week testing period was almost up. Of course, she had run into some speedbumps along the way but after several calibrations and upgrades, she had managed to improve the training sim and optimize its performance. She might have gotten a little too invested in this project, even though she really tried not to, but who was she kidding? She doesn’t really have the luxury to go in and half-ass a project when her last name is at the front of a multi-billion company. 

 

The class was about to wrap up and she had been noting down a few things on a pad. Probably a report of the sim’s performance. She finishes and begins to gather her stuff when some of the other students approached her, The first one being Tooru who was visibly wearing the costume Theo gave her. 

 

“Glad to see the costume is holding up.” 

 

“More than that, It’s doing  _ amazing _ .” Tooru struck a pose flaunting her sleek costume but was interrupted by her own laughter so she dropped the overdramatic pose. Theo smiled at this and looked at the others. She still hadn't learned all of their names but in the past two weeks, she had been introduced to six new classes so no one can really blame her for that. 

 

“So I guess we’ll see you next class?” Said the boy with red spiky hair with a bright smile on his face. Theo looked at him and shook her head quickly. 

 

“Nope, This is my last session with you guys. Its been a blast but the testing period is nearly finished.” This seemed to get the attention of the others as they all looked either confused or slightly disappointed. At this, Yaoyarozu spoke up. 

 

“Does this mean we won’t be using the sim anymore?” The others looked worried now. In the short time that they had been using it, they found out it was an interesting and fruitful experience, not to mention it always kept them on their toes, so finding out they might not be training with it any longer was a little disappointing. 

 

“Hm? Oh no, you guys will keep using it. Don't worry. It’s just that I won’t be needed here anymore.” This is when the girl who insisted on being called Tsu spoke. 

 

“What do you mean by that? Ribbit.” The others were curious as well, and it was evident in their expressions. 

 

“Well, these two weeks were needed to test out how well the sim works for each one of you. And as I said on our first meeting, I was only here in case something went wrong. But everything has worked out well enough so after a few modifications to this.” She says pointing at the computer she had been using to control the simulation. “It should be easy enough for your teachers to do what I did without assistance.” At this Tooru threw her arms around the girl practically wailing.

 

“NOooo we’re gonna miss you Theo.” 

 

“You can just text me if you wanna hang out.” She said patting the girl’s arm kind of awkwardly.

 

“You guys already exchanged numbers?” Asked the electric blonde boy smiling at both girls. At this mina spoke up excitedly. 

 

“Yeah! All the girls did. You should have seen it, she just held her phone out and kind of flicked it in our direction and suddenly we all had her contact saved. It was so cool.” The other girls chirped in with agreements. Midoriya, who happened to be walking by when he heard this, suddenly stopped and joined the group. 

 

“I never knew a phone could do that. What phone do you have?.. If it’s ok to ask.” Curiosity had made him speak before he even realized so he became a bit self-conscious near the end of his sentence. 

 

“It's ok. I just have this old thing.” She held up her phone which looked like a normal smartphone at first glance, but then he noticed it had no logo or brand name at all. He became visibly confused by this and Theo noticed right away. “I designed and built it, so it’s the only one like it.” Suddenly, his eyes got huge in realisation. 

 

“You mean like you designed Hagakure’s costume?” Theo slightly nodded before adding. 

 

“And the projectors. And the sim. But don't tell anyone.” If possible, his and everyone else’s eyes got bigger. 

 

“What? Why?”

 

“You mean you made this? By yourself?” Tooru spoke from Theo’s side, only to watch her nod.

 

“But. I thought the school made it.” The sparky blonde said looking a little confused only to receive a sharp glance from Theo. Midoriya had been holding his chin while muttering something when Theo interrupted.

 

“The only thing the school did was ask. I was the only one busting arms for a whole month to get it done, and I don’t even get the recognition.” 

 

“Why not?”

 

“They claim it’s to protect the program and my identity. Probably since it would be quite problematic if word got out that the school had me design it.” She stopped before grumbling. “Made me sign a contract and everything so all the rights belong to them.”  This is when Midoriya slammed his fist in his palm and you could practically see the lightbulb on top of his head. 

 

“Stark…” Theo rose an eyebrow. “Stark Industries.” Everyone else looked between Midoriya and Theo. “The famous Inventor, Howard Stark. The most brilliant man alive.” Theo interrupted.

 

“That would be my father. Yes.” 

 

“Of course! I didn’t realise it sooner since it’s an international company.” He turned to the others excitedly. “But they have a branch in here in Japan and they are one of the top technological developers in the world.” He turned back to her this time. “Only the best of the best get their support items from them.”

 

“That means you are mega rich right?” “Yeah! The heir of a huge company? You must be swimming in it!” Both Mina and Kaminari piped in after hearing the boy’s mini-rant. 

 

“Well, yeah. My dad is a billionaire and by extension so am I.” 

 

“Must be nice.” Kirishima said as he tilted his head up while closing his eyes.

 

“It is. My workshop is so much better than the one here at school.”  They all laughed. “Well, we should get going. I'm sure you all have stuff to do, as do I.” She says grabbing her things quickly and turning back to them. They all agree and walk back to the main building making light conversation. The girls had gone ahead and Theo ended up walking with the guys who offered to help her carry her stuff. Well some of them did, other absolutely  _ irritating _ people. Not to name any names *cough* *cough* _ porcupine _ *cough*. Only complained about how annoying it was to have her ‘waste of space presence’ around. So she actively ignored his verbal attacks and conversed with the other boys.

 

“So what do you like to do in your free time?” Kaminari asked walking closer to her. 

 

“You mean aside from inventing?” She asked looking at him. He nods and she continues. “Well, I do boxing. And I cook, It’s stress relieving.” He nodded his head encouragingly when she stopped. She drew in a deep breath and then exhaled. “And I live videogames.” At this, the redhead perked up and joined the conversation. 

 

“Really? What kind?” 

 

“Uhh stuff like The last of us, GTA 5, Zelda. Hmmm… I played Undertale once. Red dead redemption 2 and vr games.” The porcupine was definitely glaring at her though.

 

“Those are cool. I haven't played many vrs but that one that came out last month looks so awesome, I wish I could play it but I can’t afford the console and I don’t know anyone who has it.” Kirishima shoved his hands into his pockets before huffing. 

 

“Oh, you mean Cold?” Kaminari asked. He had heard about the game too and wished he could play it just as much as his friend. “They say only a small group worked on it and yet it’s the coolest most badass game ever made.” 

 

“Yeah yeah. I remember when the demo came out on PlayStation last year. Right before we all got into UA. And everyone was talking about it.” 

 

“Now they released the full game, with its own console which apparently is the greatest vr experience, like, ever. They only released like, 2,000 copies and they sold out in a few hours.” 

 

“That’s really unfair. What I wouldn’t do just to play one game.” They both agreed and sighted defeatedly in varying degrees of disappointment while their angry friend clicked his tongue. Probably in annoyance. Theo was quietly observing them for a moment before she pursed her lips. Well they look like they really reeaally wanted to play the game, plus they said they would do anything, so an idea popped up in her head. 

 

“I have it.” They stopped in their tracks and whipped their heads around to look at her. “And I could lend it to you.” They were practically on top of her shouting ‘YOU WOULD’ in less than a second. “If, you do me a favour first.” 

 

“Well, we can’t help you build things, but we’ll do literally anything else.” Kirishima practically looked like a begging puppy.

 

“Yeah, what he said.” They kept walking while an annoyed Bakugo lead the group. Theo just laughed at their antics when she shook her head.

 

“No, it’s nothing like that. In short, I made something and I want you guys to test it out.” They rose their eyebrows at this. “It’s a shield and I want to test how durable it is against strong attacks.” They understood immediately and bumped fists, clearly feeling like it that was a simple enough task and they could try the game soon enough. “Bakugou, that includes you too.” He grunted and turned his head only to glare at her.

 

“And why the fuck would I help you with anything.” He sneered when she smiled at him in response. 

 

“I’ll give you something to blow up and you get to play the game. Isn’t that a win-win?” He just turned back around and grumbled something she vaguely took as an agreement. “Lovely. Message me when you guys get a chance and I’ll bring the shield.” Kirishima and Kaminari were barely able to hold in their excitement. 

 

Right as they were about to part ways Bakugo called out to her. “How do we know you actually have it?” The guys glanced between the frowning boy and Theo, she just smirked and waved.

 

“I’ll give you proof. Right after I get to my dorm. Bye now!” She quickly walked away and completely missed the burning glare sent her way. Later that day, the three boys were approached by Mina who showed them the image of a very smug Theo holding a game and console on top of her lap. The only caption on it saying ‘Here’s the proof’.


	6. Stop! I could have dropped my croissant

“ **GO TO HELL!!!** ” The shout could be heard all around the training gym, followed by clashes and frustrated grunts. The four students had been going at it for a while. The three boys were attacking relentlessly, not holding back even a little against a single girl from the support course. But she just wouldn’t fall.  
  
[about 30 minutes earlier]  
  
“Are you sure about this Stark?” Kaminari asked looking a little worried. The girl had shown up in a black bodysuit and asked them to go all out against her shield. Since it was 3v1 and the 1 was a girl who’s not even in the hero course, naturally, he thought this was an unfair fight and had suggested they fight in pairs. Theo refused, saying she needed to test it against all of their powers and assured him she would be just fine.  
  
Kirishima had asked to see the shield. Seeing it had a simple but solid design Kirishima thought it was cool but it wouldn’t be manly if the three of them damaged her hard work. Since a certain hothead was losing his patience, she briefly explained how she had patented a new substance that would redirect kinetic energy, and therefore should deflect most of their attacks.  
  
“But what if we break it?” Asked Kirishima earning a ‘Who the fuck cares?’ From his friend.  
  
“If it breaks then it’s not good enough.”   
  
[back to the present]  
  
“ **WHY WON’T YOU DIE ALREADY!?!** ”  Bakugo spat at her sending another flurry of explosions. Surprisingly, Theo was holding up well despite all her disadvantages. But it was all thanks to the effectiveness of the shied since it absorbed and dispersed the energy from all the attacks while she was completely unscathed. She had worn a protective insulated suit for safety but the shield really worked wonders. And the boys were either, very impressed, or extremely irritated by the fact that she was still standing.  
  
It took a while longer before they decided to call it a day. They had trained hard and were feeling great, but none of them as pleased as Theo, who marvelled at the shield that hadn’t even received a single scratch. It definitely worked better than she had hoped, and this could open doors to many advancements in her tech. She was running through the possibilities in her mind when her train of thought was interrupted.  
  
“So Stark,” Kaminari said stepping towards her while trying to look cool and collected. “Was this all you needed help with?”  
  
“Hm? Yeah, that’s all for now.” She said grabbing her small bag and slinging it over her shoulder. The blonde’s playful wink had gone completely ignored. “Thanks, I guess. Just let me know when you want me to bring you the game.”

 

“How about later today? Do you need help carrying the console?” Kirishima asked wiping some sweat off his brow. He looked worn out but still quite energetic in his eyes. Probably the excitement since he was ecstatic about the game, and no one wants to directly call him out or anything, but he cried manly tears when he saw proof that Theo had the game.

“No it’s fine, I can bring it today.” She really didn’t need another being going anywhere near the chaotic war zone that is her room.

“Hey, are we gonna play it in the common rooms or what?” Kaminari had caught his breath and joined the conversation. Kirishima glanced between his friends, then noticed the deep glare Bakugo was giving them before scoffing and storming off. They stood there for a minute in awkward silence after the sudden departure of the ash blonde before Kirishima tried to dispel that atmosphere.

 

“Do you mind if we borrow it for long? If the others in our class see that we have it they might want a turn at it too. Is that ok?”

 

“Yeah sure, so long as you return it in the same condition you can have it for as long as you need. I don’t really have much time for that game anyway. I’m going back now, I’ll bring the game later.” Wishing she could yeet herself out of conversations at any time, Theo quickly walks away waving after the two remaining boys.

 

“Nice, thanks!”

 

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Is this what anxiety feels like? Theo thinks to herself because she is about to enter a building full of strangers. Granted, she had been seeing them a bunch of times in the past few weeks, but this is not the same. This isn't a professional environment where she can pretend to be doing something important to avoid making small talk with people. This time, she’s encountering them all in their free time, as they are all relaxing in their dorm and seeing as she is the one invading their space then interactions with others will be unavoidable. Maybe she could just drop the console off and swiftly leg it. That would be a great idea if it wasn't for the fact that she actually wants to be there when they start playing to see their reactions. Weird. Maybe the fact that she knows these people is what’s making her want to know if they’d enjoy it; what exactly would they say and how they would react to things in the game. She kind of just wants to be present to experience it with them even though they aren’t the only ones who have ever played.

 

Everything happened kind of fast when she entered. As soon as she approached the door she was dragged inside by Kaminari and Kirishima. Noticing a few people hanging around, and some of the girls approached her, starting conversations of their own after they found out why she was there. Bakugo had been slumped on the couch, arms crossed and glaring at everyone for being so damn loud, but if he was sitting there. So here she is, helping them set up the console and wondering if they expected her to leave right after. Maybe she could afford to hang around for a while but that would mean throwing off her already messy sleep schedule. Perhaps it wouldn’t be a good idea to stay, after all, she was absolutely exhausted from the day’s training. And she noticed the other three acting like nothing which she kind of envied. Maybe if she worked out more her arms wouldn’t be so damn sore. And her legs, and probably her entire body but it’s hard to tell when you feel so tired. With that in mind going to bed early sounded great right about now. Yeah, she’ll do that.

 

“Hey Stark, do you wanna hang out here for a bit?” On second thought, spending time with her fellow brethren sounds just as good, so she agrees. After a quick game of rock paper scissors, they decided Kirishima would go first. He grabbed the headgear and sat down on the couch while the game loaded up. They watched with anticipation as the title screen showed on the TV and then the game started.


	7. Y tho

The students of UA are once again buzzing with excitement. They had all been training hard and preparing as best as they could for the upcoming sports festival, and now it’s practically upon them.

 

Last year the students of class 1A had wowed the audience with their raw power and determination, and audiences were once again anticipating their second showing this year in order to see just how much they had grown in that time.

 

Rhodey was anticipating it just as much as everyone else with the addition of wanting to know if his friend would actually participate. He checks his phone seeing no new messages. 

 

He had been sitting at their usual place in the arcade for a while and still no word. The pizza he had gotten was probably cold by now and he was about to eat it on his own until Theo slumped on the seat across from him.

 

They stare at each other for a moment before Theo grabs a slice of pizza. 

 

“Hey.”

 

“Hey.”

 

“It’s cold.” She says not taking her eyes off the slice, Rhodey took a slice for himself and replied.

 

“Wouldn’t be if you hadn’t kept me waiting for 20 minutes.”

 

“Huh, yeah.” She says checking something on her phone while she eats. “It’s still good though” 

 

“Yeah, so what’s up?” He asks immediately noticing that she’s more aloof than usual. 

 

“You remember that thing I was working on?” She said putting the phone down. Rhoday grabbed another slice before replying. 

 

“You know you are always working on something, right?”

 

“ _ That _ thing.” He took a bite and then realised. “Someone found out and stole it.” Rhodey sputtered eyes wide and trying to calm down so he could speak. This conversation was not what he had been expecting.

 

“Sto-Stole it? What, you mean someone  _ broke into _ your house and took it?” He asked giving her an incredulous stare. “How could they even get past JARVIS?” 

 

“They took out the power and snuck in before the system could reboot itself.” She said picking some cheese from the pizza and eating it before letting out a low chuckle. “Guess I’ll have to get a separate back up generator for our backup generator. And improve JARVIS.” 

 

At that moment old man Katsuma walks out from the staff room and greets them with his usual bright smile. They had known him since they accidentally found this place in an alley when lost and became regulars thanks to its amazing pizzas despite the fact that none of the games actually worked. 

 

But when they found out their new favourite place to hang out was about to close they both took it upon themselves to fix whatever they could in their free time. At first, it took a while since the machinery and circuits are so old, but they acclimated to the machines’ needs and have gradually been restoring them. 

 

So this had become their place to unwind and have fun fixing old games while discussing their own lives. 

 

The old man had been sceptical at first since they were both so young, and he was convinced that young people didn’t have an appreciation for antiques. Even his own grandson who was older than the told him to just sell his old dusty arcade so he could retire and let companies do something more useful with this space. The thought broke his heart since after losing his wife this place was all he had but he really didn’t see a way to save it.

 

But these two kids proved themselves when they managed to get running his old Pac-Man game which hadn’t functioned properly in 3 years but he never had the heart to throw out. Yet after taking a few days to do research, they fixed it in one afternoon.

 

After more and more games were restored and functional he noticed more people had started to frequent his Bowling Alley Arcade, he probably should have thought of a better name when he opened, he felt the weight lift off his shoulders knowing that he could salvage this place. This place was his entire life and he had hope thanks to them.

 

“Anything giving you any trouble lately Mr K?” Rhodey smiled when he shuffled towards them. 

 

“You mean aside from my knee?” The three laughed at the old man’s humour. “Well, lane 5 and 9 stopped working this afternoon, everything else is as you left it.” Rhodey shifted a bit so he could have space to sit but the old man refused, saying he still had much to do. 

 

“We can get in there and have a look. Hopefully, it can be sorted quickly.” Added Theo while looking over at the bowling alley side. Since it was the only one in the area it was pretty popular, especially with all the great food. And later at night is when they are usually fully booked, so having two lanes out of order would not be good for the old man who is still trying to make back what he had been loosing over the years before they started coming. 

 

“Thank you, but please, enjoy your pizza first. I don’t have a birthday party booked for today so there is no rush.” He said smiling and waving as he started to walk off. They nodded at him before getting back to their pizza. 

 

“So… when did it happen?” Rhodey could tell the subject would ruin the mood again but this was his best friend and he wanted to know. 

 

“Just last night. You know how my dad practically lives at his office, right? Well, sometime between 2 and three am I got an alert from JARVIS after the power went back online and immediately told my dad to call the police.” Rhodey looked at her while nodding his head gently. “So he gets there with the police and they see all the glass panels that were smashed in the break-in. all the glass and footprints leading in and out of the basement.” 

 

“So they came straight for your workshop.” He said sitting back as he let the news sink in.

 

“Yeap. Didn't take  _ anything _ else.” They both understood this meant the burglars knew exactly what they were looking for and how to get it, which is impressive seeing the amount of security, firewalls and encryption codes, not to mention JARVIS, protecting the mansion. The entire situation was suspicious.

 

“What do you think they could do with it?” He asked after a long pause, though he didn’t really need an answer for that since she had explained in detail back when she first started on it.

 

“It’s more like what can’t they do with it. It’s obvious that whoever took it knows about the rarest element on earth and what it can do, and since it can’t be synthesized in any lab out there they must also know I can make it somehow.” 

 

“That explains your recent stalkers.” She hummed in agreement. They had noticed two weeks ago that people would follow around and linger wherever she went so she had gotten even more wary than usual and not leaving UA so often. “So they were either trying to get you too, or keep you away from home.” 

 

“Hm no, I doubt they wanted me too. They would have given their ghosting more effort if that were the case. They probably have plans for it and got all they need.”  

 

‘That makes sense’ he thought. “So what are you going to do then?” 

 

“No idea.” She said grabbing the last slice of pizza. 

 

“Well, it’s your metal, Theo. You’ll deal with this.” He says trying to reassure his friend, fully believing that she will get past this and eventually replace what was lost. She nodded, chewing while seemingly lost in thought. Then he tried changing the subject. “You know, this is not what I expected when you finally called me to hang out after two weeks.” 

 

She raises her eyebrows and replies. “Oh yeah, what were you expecting?” 

 

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe your sports festival?” He only got a confused ‘huh?’ in response. “UA’s sports festival?” 

 

Theo blinked twice. “I know what it is. That's only once a year” 

 

“Yeah.” He says resting his elbows on the table and clasping his hands together. 

 

“So why are we talking about it?” 

 

“It’s already been a year.” 

 

There is a pause before and Rhogey smiles wider as Theo finally realises. “What.” 

 

“I hear the first years start tomorrow, and then it’s your turn the day after.” He says with a laugh watching in amusement as Theo.exe stops working. “You obviously haven’t prepared for it, so what are you gonna do?” 

 

Theo hastily wipes her hands with a tissue and dunks it on the now empty pizza plate. Her friend is giving her the ‘then perish’ look and she knows she fucked up but they both still laugh when she gestures and says “Guess I’ll die.” 

 

After bringing their tray to the counter and going to check on the lanes they found out the ball accelerator was jammed on lane 9 and lane 5 had one of the motors of the drive frame needed minor repairs, which thankfully they could do since the entire machine cannot work without all three motors. 

 

“You’ll at least try at the festival right?” He says while they're in the middle of repairs.

 

“I don’t know about that,” Theo says pushing a strand of hair out of her face and getting grime on it. 

 

“I’ll be there watching so you better.” 

 

“Great, thanks.” She replies back in a sarcastic tone.

 

“That was a joke, Theo, sort your own things out first. Ok?” 

 

“Yeah, I know.” She gives him a light shoulder bump. “Now come on, we gotta finish this!” Even though Theo doesn’t do much to thank Rhodey for all his support, she appreciates it and she’s glad he’s always there for her. But it’s all good because he knows her well enough that she doesn’t need to say it often.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Been gone for a bit but I will make up for those two chapters soon, cheers.


	8. This is fine

It’s the morning of the sports festival at UA. Hundreds of people are lining up outside trying to get through the ridiculous amount of security at the gates, and there are more walking around the food stans within the campus and talking about this year’s promising heroes in training.

 

The entire place buzzes with energy just as it does every single year without fail. Classes are getting changed and gathering in their class’ waitingrooms ready for battle.  

 

Some people are ready for some friendly competition, others are out for blood. But our class 2H this year is on something else entirely…

 

***

 

“Is anyone in here actually excited? Like at all?” Someone asked curiously.

 

“No one’s excited…”

 

“I’m excited!”

 

“Shut up, No-one.” A bunch of people can be heard laughing even after the loud offended ‘Hey!’.

 

“Yeah, you guys remember when the Olympics were a thing and people would say they should put an average dude to go against real athletes? Just so people could see the difference? Yeah, we are all that ‘average dude’ now.”

 

“So basically, we’re only here to make classes A and B look good, huh.”

 

“Basically, yeah.”

 

“Aye cheers I’ll drink to that..”

 

At least two people snort at this comment and someone else replies “Drink what? That nasty grape juice you always have with you?”

 

“Honestly, dude, why do you even drink that? You said it doesn’t even taste like grape.”

 

“It doesn’t taste like grape but it sure as hell tastes like purple.. and it helps fill the void, if only temporarily..”

 

“What in the actual-”

 

“IT’S TIME MY DUDES.” The last person to arrive at the waiting room calls but their excited voice does not match their mildly bored expression.

 

“Don’t call us dudes.”

 

“Shut up and get off your asses, the sooner we get this over with the sooner we can get back on with our own lives. Hatsume please bring that gremlin with you.” The student dropped their exited façade and got straight to the point.

 

\---------------------- *Many exasperated groans later* ----------------------

 

“Yeah, I’m so not feeling it this year.”

 

“Same af dude.”

 

“Did u just say ‘af’ in a real-life conversation?”

 

“Will you two be quiet, some moron from class A is going up the stage now.”

 

“I mean, if they’re just gonna do a follow up of last year then I’m not worried about missing it.”

 

“Hey, watch out for the gremlin, dude.”

 

“Oh shit, nearly stepped on it.”

 

“You’re welcome bitch boy.”

 

“Shut the fuck up.”

 

\---------------------- *Several minutes later* ----------------------

 

If you listen closely enough you can almost hear the internal screams of pain and agony of everyone who isn’t enjoying this first round in the slightest. They may or may not have prepared in their own way, but honestly, those hero course students are on a whole different league. It’s kind of sad and almost unfair, but such is life. They won the quirk lottery and the rest just kind of exist in the same space.

 

Yeap, it may be sad and unfair but that’s just how it is.

 

However, one student in particular moves along with the crowd while mentally detached from whatever has been going on since the start of the day.

 

To say that Theo feels nonchalant about this year’s sports festival is an understatement, especially when it just sneaked up on her like that at what could easily be one of the worst moments possible.

 

Her average, unathletic body is running around trying to finish this one game. But her mind is running several times as fast, trying to figure out the best way to get her property back. Leaving it to the police and investigators had been an option, and she was sure her father was already on that, but she couldn’t help but feel like they wouldn’t find it soon enough if at all, so naturally, she felt like she had to do something herself.

 

Instead of spending the previous day preparing she had checked the security footage around the area in hopes that it would give some clue of who broke in and where they went but found very little. They were smart, she noted, experienced and probably experts in what they do, If she wanted to find them she would need to try harder.

 

Much like in the previous year, after the first round was over only a few qualified for the next. ‘That’s fine’ Theo thought noticing some of the other students being grateful it was finally over, she’s the heir to a multi-billion company and therefore doesn’t need the self-promotion these guys do, no sense dwelling over it.

 

Taking a seat on the class 2H stans Theo is still mulling over the ordeal. The metal she had studied is extremely rare and disgustingly expensive, but she understood how versatile and powerful it is, that’s the only reason she chose to spend so long trying to figure out a way to transmute it.

 

She almost thought it would not be possible, especially since the metal itself cannot be synthesised anywhere, but several days and a pair of very bloody hands later she had figured it out and immediately called Rhodey to celebrate the breakthrough.

 

Maybe they shouldn’t have discussed the capabilities of a metal that is stronger than steel and completely vibration absorbent, and that she had made around 75 kg of it in such a shady area as the arcade but they had no idea if someone had listened in on their conversation.

 

That would probably explain things, they should have known better, but now she needs to get them all back.

 

Unfortunately, if they all get scattered and sold off quickly then there is little chance even the investigators could find all of it. She needs to move and fast. If weapons of any kind are crafted from this metal, then whoever is hurt or put in danger because of it will be on her. That thought alone makes her fidget even more which people sitting close to her noticed but choose not to comment on.

 

After contemplating her choices for a while she decides that finding the robbers is her top priority. She will find them, get her metal back and let the police handle the rest after.

 

The cheers and screams of the audience in the stadium bring her back to reality for a moment. ‘Thousands of people are having the time of their lives watching kids beat each other up, nice’ she thinks. Well, it does bring a slight sense of satisfaction watching the very best of their entire year act overly excited followed by getting their asses beat. Each to their own, she supposes.

 

They will all be having two days off after this festival is over, that’s her chance and she has to start preparing. Hopefully, she won’t be too late by then.


	9. Don't fuck with me. I have the power of God and anime on my side! HAAAAAAAAAAAAA

‘Ok I think I’m all set’ Theo thinks while she rummages through her bag one last time. 

 

Right after the sports festival had concluded for her year she had legged it to her dorm room and began searching for any clues she could find from the security feed that she had available. Since the power had been cut there wasn't much to go on in the first place but it was a start. 

 

From what she gathered they somehow cut the power before even getting close to the house, which was pretty smart of them since the proximity alarm would have gone off, and JARVIS would have contacted her and her father before they even took a step further. 

 

So the question is, where did they go after they got what they came for? Well, with patience and a clear head she figured it out. 

 

And maybe by hacking into the computers of the investigators on this case but no one needs to know that. 

 

So as soon as she found the possible location, a warehouse which according to records it’s just a simple, lesser company that stores packages there before being picked up and delivered. But of course, digging further she found that certain stolen packages have a tendency of passing through there. They probably work as intermediates for anyone who will pay behind the scenes. 

So she got to work on the gadgets she’d need while surveying out the place through satellite and CCTV. And here she is now, in the early evening of her last day off ready for the solo mission. 

 

“All right J, you know the drill. If anything goes wrong or I'm not back by midnight contact my dad first.” 

 

“Yes, miss Theo. I wiww update you if I find any changes in the guawd wounds of the wawehouse.” JARVIS oh so helpfully provided and Theo did her best not to cringe every single time he spoke. 

 

Seeing her foul mood these past few days Rhodey had made it his personal mission to cheer her up and distract her from the current events, and he made it so JARVIS would only speak in owo dialect for a whole week.

 

Theo found this annoying but didn’t feel like switching it back when she’s got so much going on at the moment, also appreciating the effort his friend put in trying to make light of the situation. 

 

Giving her room one last glance Theo slings her bag over her shoulders and quietly makes her way out of the dorms. There had been a few people around the common area relaxing or taking care of dinner but she simply kept up her pace and walked towards the school gates. 

 

Right outside of the Heights Alliance there were a few people walking around, training or socializing and she would have continued on her way had a group of said people not decided to approach her at that moment. 

 

“Hey there Stark, where are you going?” She turned to see Uraraka waving at her followed by the Deku squad plus Todoroki, all of whom greeted her from where they stood. She had dubbed them the Deku squad a while ago since they were always together whenever she was around. 

 

“Oh. Hey.” Theo said, she didn’t mean to be rude but the dry tone in her voice won’t be going anywhere until she’s back home with her property. “I’m going home for the night.” 

 

They may have met her only a few weeks ago but event they could notice how she was being more aloof than usual. Even during the sports festival two days ago, when all the classes had gathered at the stadium before the games began they had spotted her and tried to greet her but they were all swiftly ignored. 

 

The few who noticed at first thought she just might be tired from training or too nervous to talk but seeing her two days later looking even worse rose some questions. “But we have school again tomorrow? Why go now?” Midoriya was the one who spoke this time, like the cinnamon roll he is he seems genuinely worried about the support course student. 

 

“Personal errand.” She says waving whilst she walks away. While their concern is appreciated she really, really needs to get going, like right now. 

 

“O-oh, ok!” She didn’t miss the dejected tone. Damn… and she really needs to hurry... But even so, she still stopped in her tracks turning around and offering the best smile she could. Even if it looked strained and tired. 

 

“Don’t worry, I’ll sort it out and be back tomorrow.” This seemed to ease their concerns ever so slightly since they smiled and waved back, even Uraraka called out for Theo to text her whenever; to which Theo agreed and finally continued to make back to the school gates. 

 

Now, obviously, she lied when she said she’d be going home, which meant there wouldn’t be the usual black car waiting for her right at the entrance. But she still hoped that even in her roughed up state she had done well enough to convince them. 

 

Quickly making her way through the streets she hopped on a bus and was soon on her way. The ride would be about 20 minutes and then she would have to walk the rest of the way so this time was precious for mental preparation. Taking deep breaths, while watching over the warehouse’s live security feed and making sure all the steps were in order to sneak in, grabs her stuff and sneak out undetected. 

 

Hopefully, this would go smoothly. She hoped more than anything that it would all be there, that she wasn’t too late and that they hadn't had time to mess with it. But honestly, the more time passed, the more anxious she felt and the bounce in her legs was starting to get annoying. 

 

When she eventually made it to her stop and walked to the warehouse looking as calm and nonchalant about the situation. Like she wasn’t about to break in and steal something. 

 

Well, she’s only stealing back what’s rightfully hers so it’s not the same thing. 

 

Theo grabbed a handheld device which she would be used to detect all the security cameras around her and send a signal which would cause interference for a few seconds. Just long enough to get past any of them without it being overly suspicious. She sneaked around the back right in that 17-second window where the guards would be away from the locked door. Thankfully it was a digital lock which she could bypass in 5 seconds tops. Once inside she had to quickly make her way through the long corridors before anyone came to see who opened the door.

 

She ended up diving into an empty aisle right in between large stacks of long boxes. The guards on duty were looking around for any signs of entry but after several long minutes, they went back to their places.

 

In a huge place with so many packages, you would think she’d need to go over each one. Like finding a needle in a haystack. And that’s what she would have had to do had she not been struck by an idea after watching Jirou use her quirk. 

 

Still awkwardly lying in the cave of boxes, Theo pulls out a custom metal detector and activates it; making sure no one’s close before turning up the signal. 

 

Since the metal has such unique properties, then it's signature and echo will be just as unique. Yes, she may be looking for a needle in a haystack, but at least she was smart enough to bring a magnet. She waited and waited and after a few seconds, she got a ping back. ‘Hell yeah, looks like my package is here’ She thought, smirking at the screen. The echo must be coming from the other side of the warehouse if it’s this weak. She’d need to be a lot closer to single out the package.

 

Carefully she crawled her way out and made a beeline, avoiding guards as best as she could while staying on course. The signal was getting stronger the closer she got. Almost there… almost. She looked at a half-empty aisle seeing on one of the shelves a lone case and her heart dropped. 

 

‘If that’s the one… then there is no way that’s all of it’ That was Theo’s loudest of the million thoughts going through her head. She looked back at the device hoping that she made a mistake. Nope. She slid open the back and checked the circuits, maybe she misplaced a wire somewhere? Nope, not that either. That’s the only signal in this place... right? Wrong. That was definitely the only case holding the rare metal, and it most likely contains less than half of what was stolen. If the rest got sold off and used already could she ever find it? Would she get it back? Fantastic. This is great, just what she neede-

 

“Come on, did you see how much they offered for it? I know you said not to give away that much in one go but you know me. I’m a simple man. I see huge wads of cash and I instantly like.” Two people were walking around the aisle and getting closer. Channelling her inner dolphin she dived behind the only package large enough to hide her in the whole isle which was about 10 feet away. It was rather impressive. 

 

“Idiot. Of course you would. You didn’t have to go through the trouble of stealing it form a highly secured mansion. Since all you do is waste your life in this dusty old building you wouldn’t know what it takes to be a real merchant.” Said a tall man in smart, dark clothes speaking to a shorter man wearing a uniform who was now pretty much whining to the other guy. So the media’s depiction of villains always looking fancy and dramatic wasn’t that far off, huh. And her suspicion was pretty much confirmed. If only they would do their jobs as villains and blab about their evil plans a little more it would be super helpful. 

 

“The hefty sum is not unwelcome, but there’s no telling when we can get our hands on more of this.” He said stroking the case gently with the knuckles of his fingers. 

 

“What? So I was supposed to just turn down 500  _ million _ ?” 

 

“You were supposed to control your impulsive self and ask me first. They paid you in US dollars, how are you going to move all your part without looking suspicious. I can deal with it but there is no way your small company can make that much money legally, and the police will be on top of you before you can exchange it. That’s why it would have been better all around to simply wait for the perfect deal instead of jumping on the first offer.” 

 

They had begun walking away while arguing some more by now and Theo is sitting there thanking them for being so useful. Not. Stupid criminals had one job but they decided to leave before saying anything helpful.

 

That’s fine, she’s now more determined to find the rest and they're definitively going to help her. Of course, they won’t ever find out. So before leaving, she quietly sneaked into the office and placed a bug inside of their computers. She’ll access their records and find out exactly what happened these past few days. Easy. 

 

Now she needed to go back grab that case and slip out undetected. Not as easy, especially since it seems they value it very much. But Theo would not believe her luck when she conveniently found a similar case which, honestly she didn’t care what was inside, but would be a pretty good decoy just in case. 

 

That’s right. It may not be all of it like she had desperately hoped, but it was something. She could work with that for now. Swapping out the cases and dancing around the guards she nearly made it to the door when she overheard another conversation. 

 

“What if the XO come back and ask for the rest. I mean, surely after seeing it’s the real thing they will. Right?” Theo stopped on her tracks and made sure she couldn’t be seen. 

 

“I’m certain it’s the real thing. And in that case, do what I initially told you to do. Keep your mouth shut and talk to me first” Theo would love to listen in some more since the criminals were finally were doing their thing. But her window of opportunity was closing and if she didn’t get out now she’d have to wait for another 33 minutes, so she quickly stepped away and left the warehouse the same way she came in. With the added weight of the case and a slight sense of accomplishment since at the very least she wasn’t caught. 

 

She probably looked like a gazelle speed walking despite the heavyweight but she’d only allow herself to relax once she got home. So she hailed a cab and got on and called Rhodey over to her house to give him the update and plan out the rest. But she’ll get home first, Probably make an omelette or two- Oh, her phone’s ringing. 

 

“Hey, dad. The school told you? Yeah, I was at Rhodey’s but I’m on my way now. I’m on a taxi so don’t worry, I’ll be careful. Yeah, see you later.” Yeah, now she needs to feet him the cover story but knowing him, he’ll probably lie for her without her even asking. And she can’t wait to tell him what she just did so he better hurry.


	10. THIS IS WHY MOM DOESN'T FUCKING LOVE YOU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me feed you guys some Toast.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN?” was the first thing Rhodey yelled once he wrapped his head around what his friend just told him.

 

As soon as he had arrived at Theo’s workshop she broke the news to him, which at first was met with silence until he finally caved. He knew Theo was prone to do crazy things, and this was probably not the worst thing he’d ever heard, but he was still not impressed.

 

“Hey, you said I should sort my own things out,” she said in response, arms wide and posture open and relaxed. An attempt to keep things light and undermine the situation like she always does.

 

“Don’t blame this on me I didn’t say go steal it back, I meant let the police handle this as normal people would!!!” He held his hand out at her as if physically trying to stop her from twisting his own words and not taking this as seriously as she should. “What if anyone found you breaking in? Or reported you to the police? What if they didn’t and instead took you as a hostage or something, huh?”

 

“All right, you’re blowing this out of proportion-”

 

“Oh! Am I, Theo?”

 

“Yes, Rhodey, the police weren’t getting anywhere and even _I_ was too late to get it all back. You know why I had to do this. Besides, I wouldn’t go in there if I wasn’t sure I could slip in and out without being noticed.” And she had a point. As impulsive and irresponsible as she may seem, she actually took so many precautions to make sure it would all go well in the end. He knew this as well, but it won’t stop him from worrying. Not when he was the only one of the two who ever does.

 

“You can’t know that for sure.” He said, equal parts angry and understanding.

 

“Yes, I can.”

 

“No, you can’t”

 

“Yes. I can.” The familiar caramel coloured fluff decided to hop on the desk and ask for pats from the male who was, for once, completely ignoring her. (Unacceptable. Toast demands attention meow.)  They both sighed, (Toast’s tension relief magic always works) and Theo continued with a slight laugh, “Listen. I know you’re worried but I’m fine, the risk I took was calculated.”

 

“Theodora Edina Stark. This is no time for a stupid meme reference.” He said pronouncing her full name and knowing exactly the kind of reaction it will have.

 

There was a long in which Theo inhaled, “There's always time for a meme reference.” she shot him a ‘never again’ look but understood and decided to be serious about the matter at hand.  “All right. You’re worried, I get it. I’ll find what I can from here and leave it to the police.” She said digging her fingers in her cat’s thick fur, giving it a few gentle scratches in that one spot that always made her purr.

 

“Thank you. I’m going now, I do have a life of my own you know.” He said smiling for the first time since he greeted her today.

 

“I know.” It’s not like they talk every day, and they sometimes go weeks without seeing each other but when one of them calls the other always shows up. Perks of being best friends for years you could say.

 

“Theo?”

 

Shes fully engrossed with the cats and barely manages a ‘hmm?’ so calls again more firmly. “Theo.”

 

“What?” She stops altogether and looks at him.

 

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” Giving her a pointed look and knowing that she knows exactly what he means this time.

 

“Sure thing mom.” They both walk out of the basement laughing and followed closely by a meowing Toast.

 

“What is it Toast?” Rhoday has seen toast be active, but shes usually more calm and quiet. Especially when there are people around.

 

Theo watched toast for a moment, thinking of how after the break in they pretty much deserted the house and had the police investigate and guard the place while it was being fixed up. “She’s never stayed at dad’s office for so long before. Stress maybe?”

 

“Aw, you little Toasted Marshmallow~ did you miss me that much?” He bent down a little so he could talk to the small creature as it approached and looked up at him with big bright eyes. He could get used to getting this much attention from the feline. Or at least that’s what he thought until it jumped and clawed it’s way up his leg. His groans of pain were completely overshadowed by Theo’s laughter.

 

“All right. all right” He says prying the cat’s claws off him and setting it on the ground. Fluffing it’s fur the wrong way in retaliation before stepping away before he could get murdered. “Stay safe ok?”

 

“Yeah, bye.” Theo shook her head and took in a breath to stop laughing.

  


***********************************************

  


Later that evening after Toast had been fed, they were both sitting on the couch. Each entertained by their own thing. Toast murdering a toy squirrel filled with catnip and Theo on a laptop going over the information she received.

 

It was all mostly to do with shipments and finances. Seemingly normal stuff. But she quickly found there was also lots of hidden files of some rather shady deals and even shadier costumers. The warehouse itself was in pretty bad shape. That, and its reputation made it seem so ordinary and unimportant yet they made this much money off the books. Yeah, that is definitely all just a front.

 

That also explains the amount of security. No regular shipping company of that calibre would have security this tight both in personnel and digitally. Not like it matters much since Theo easily bypassed both of those things, but thinking of what Rhodey said earlier, maybe she shouldn’t make this a habit.

 

Momentarily distracted by a purring Toast that squeezed its way into her lap through her arm, Theo let the seeking algorithm she had been running do its job in finding all information relevant to her and gave her meowing cat a soft kiss on its little head. Of all things, she was so glad the cat had only been spooked that one night and was otherwise uninjured. Because God knows the hell she will raise if it’d been hurt or lost that night.

 

Humanity had been spared that day, and they didn’t even know it.

 

A ring from her phone made Theo move away from her cat and unlock it. The notification showed a new message from Ochako Uraraka. Ah, that’s right. She’d spoken with them earlier today at school and they seemed worried. She supposes that’s why. Theo replied, letting her know she was ok, as well as sending a picture of herself squishing Toasts’ cheeks so they didn’t need to worry. Which, naturally, was met with lost of messages and emojis of the girl gushing over Theo’s caramel Toast.

 

With the rapid fire of texts, Theo almost missed the pop up on her laptop. Several files, one after another, had been popping up on the screen showing contracts, messages and even images relating back to the group she’d heard the two guys at the warehouse mention. The XO.

 

Diggin up more on them she found a whole network. Intricate and very well hidden. With what seems to be about 5 different establishments all in the three surrounding cities, and several members all around. So much information was scrambled and encrypted it would probably take days before she finds a clue.

 

Wonderful. She thought the hard part was over but apparently, the game has just begun.


End file.
